Stamp moistener and affixer.



No. 701,243. Patented May 27, I902.

J. F. AMANN.

STAMP MOISTENER AND AFFIXER.

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No. 70l.243. Patented May 27, 11902.

.1. F. AMAN N. STAMP MOISTENER AND AFFIXER.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN F. AMANN, OF MADISONVILLE, OHIO.

ST'AMP MOISTENER AND AFFIXER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 701,243, dated May 27,1902.

Application filed July 1'], 1901. Serial No. 68,599. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN F. AMANN, a citizen of the United States,residing at Madisonville, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio,have invented new and useful Improvements in Stamp Moisteners andAftixers, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention'relates to stamp moisteners and affixers; andthe objectinview is to provide a simple, cheap, and reliable machine adapted to befastened to. a desk, table, or similar support, the machine being soconstructed as to moisten stamps successively, feed the same forward,shear or detach the same from the sheet of stamps, and forcibly apply oraffix the stamps successively to envelops or other articles or packagesplaced in position to receive stamps.

The constructionof the machine is such and the parts thereof are sotimed with respect to each other that the stamps are successively fed toaposition beneath a reciprocatory and spring-actuated plunger,by meansof which they are separated from the sheet and individually applied toenvelops 0r similar articles placedbeneath and in the path of theplunger. The plunger is elevated by hand-operated mechanism, andsimultane ously therewith the stamps are fed to a moistening devicewhich m'oistens the mucilage on the stamps, the latter beingsubsequently advanced by the feeding device into the path of theplunger, which operates in the manner stated. The only attentionrequired on the part of the operator is to manipulate the hand-crankwith theaid of one hand while inserting the envelops or other articlesto be stamped beneath the plunger with the remaining hand, the rest ofthe operation being automatically performed by the machine.

With the above and other objects in view, the nature of which willappear more fully as the description proceeds, the invention consists inthe novel construction, combination, and arrangement of partshereinafter fully described, illustrated, and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings,Figure 1 is a perspective view of a stampmoistener and affixer constructed in accordance with the presentinvention and shown applied to a table or similar support. Fig. 2 is anelevation of the same, showing the gear-case in section. Fig. 3 is avertical section through the machine, taken at right angles to Fig. 2,showing the plunger spring. Fig. 4 is a detail perspective view of themoistener-cup. Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the plunger andplunger-head. Fig. 6 is a detail sec tion, showing a portion of thetable and the anvil-bed.

Similar numerals of reference designate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings.

The stamp moistening and affixing machine contemplated in this inventioncomprises, essentially, a table 1, adapted to contain a sheet or aportion of a sheet of stamps in the usual form sold by the Post-0ff1ceDepartment, and in order to render the machine more compact for storageand transportation the table 1 is divided into sections, the mainsection being designated by the numeral 1 and having hinged, as at 2, tothe opposite ends thereof extensions or leaves 3, adapted to be foldedflatwise upon the main or stationary section 1 for the sake ofcompactness or folded outward therefrom, so as to lie in the samehorizontal plane therewith, as illustrated in Fig. 1,.for. the purposeof accommodating a sheet or a portion of a sheet of stamps and enablingthe same to be moved lengthwise of the table under the operationof thefeeding device hereinafter described. The said table is provided at" oneside with a gagerib 4 for enabling the operator to properly position theadjacent edge of the sheet of stamps preparatory to operating themachine.- The main or stationary section 1 of the table is adapted to besecured to an ordinary desk or other support of a like character bymeans of a clamp comprising an arm 5, extending downward from the underside of the table and having an angular extension 6, through whichpasses a thumb-screw 7, adapted to engage beneath the projecting ledgeor top of the table, as shown in Fig. 2. The table is also provided onits under side with a horizontally-disposed anvil or bed 8, adapted toreceive the impact of the plunger, hereinafter described, said anvil orbed being designed'to receive the envelops or other packages to whichthe stamps are to be applied.

The anvil or bed 8 is provided at its inner end with an upturned flangeor web 9, which connects with and is preferably formed inte-' Arrangedabove the anvil or bed 8 is a casing or housing 10, substantiallyrectangular in horizontal section and terminating in line with the uppersurface of the table 1. The outer edge of the housing 10 is on a linewith the corresponding edge of the table 1 where the latter is widest.Atone side of the housing 10 the table is cut away or a portion thereofremoved, as shown at 11, as no support is needed at that point for thestamps for the reason that they have been previously severed or removedfrom the sheet by the operation of the plunger.

The housing 10 is open at the bottom, and working therein is areciprocatory plunger comprising a stem 12 and a plunger-head 13, whichcorresponds in shape to the interior of the housing 10. The stem 12 isprovided along one edge with teeth 14 in the form of a rack-bar, whichteeth are adapted to be en- 'gaged by the teeth of a mutilated pinion15,

which is mounted fast on a horizontal shaft 16, journaled inupwardly-extending cheekplates 10, formed integral on the upper portionof the housing, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, said shaft having. connectedtherewith an operating hand-crank 17, by which motion is imparted to themutilated pinion and thence to the plunger-stem for elevating theplunger. The plunger is thrown downward with requisite force by means ofa plunger-spring 18, contained within the housing and interposed betweenthe plunger-head l3 and the top 19 of the housing, as clearly shown inFig. 3, the stem 12 passing upward and outward through an opening 20 inthe top 19, as shown in the same figure.

The sheet of stamps placed upon the table is fed forward by means of aseries of feeders 21,consisting of toothed wheels 21, mounted fast upona feeder-shaft 22, ,iournaled in suitable bearings 23, connected withthe housing 10 and operated by means of an intermittent pinion 24, whichis fast on the feedershaft and in constant mesh with an intermittentgear 25, rotatable on a stud-shaft 26, projecting outward from thehousing 10, the said wheel being equipped with a milled thumbpiece orsetting-knob 27, by means of which the wheels 25 and 24 may be primarilyrotated for setting the machine and feeding the initial stamp forwardinto position to be operated upon by the descending plunger-head. Theteeth of the feeder-wheels 21 are adapted to enter and pass through theperforations in the sheet of stamps and to be received in shallowgrooves 28, formed in the upper surface of the table 1, the feeders 21being arbetween the rows of perforations between the stamps. In this waythe whole sheet of stamps is fed along the table uniformly'andpositively and prevented from canting or getting out of line.

In order to properly time the feeding mechanism with the plunger, theshaft 16 has fast thereon a mutilated gear 29, which meshesintermittently with the intermittent gear 25, as will be readilyunderstood by an examination of Fig. 1. The teeth of the gear 29 are soarranged that they operate the intermittent gear 25 simultaneously withthe engagement between the teeth of the mutilated gear 15 andtheplunger-stem. Thereforeastheshaft 16 is turned and the gear-pinion 15operated to elevate the plunger the mutilated gear 29 operates throughthe medium of the wheels 25 and 24 to revolve the feeder-wheels 21, soas to advance the sheet of stamps and carry another stamp under theplunger. At the instant the plunger is released and thrown downward bythe actuating-spring the mutilated gear 29 diseng ages itself from theintermittent gear 25, thus stopping the feed of the stamps. The plungerdescending forcibly detaches the underlying stamp from the sheet andapplies the same to the envelop, the stamp having been previouslymoistened by means which will now be described.

The moistening device comprises a moistening-cup 30, provided in itsupper side with an opening 31, surrounded by an upstanding rim 32, whichprojects upward through an opening 33 in the table, as shown in Figs. 1and 3. The cup is provided with oppositelyextending flanges 34,by meansof which it is secured to the table. The size of the cup 30 is withinthe discretion of the manufacturer and will be varied according to thecapacity of the machine. Ordinarily, however, the cup will beconsiderably larger than the size indicated by the opening in the topthereof, so as to contain asufiiciently large sponge to carry moistureenough to last throughout the operation of stamping the required numberof pieces of mail. A sponge or piece of other material (indicated at 35)is placed in the cup and arranged so that the upper surface thereof willlie approximately flush with the upper surface of the table 1. The opentop of the cup is also arranged in the path of the outermost row ofstamps, so that as the stamps are fed beneath the plunger they aredragged across the wet surface of the sponge and the mucilage thereonmoistened preparatory to the severing of the stamps from the sheet andtheir application successively to the pieces of mail. It is alsointended to inclose the gearing, together with the reciprocatoryplungerstem, by means of a suitable sheet-metal gearcase 36 (illustratedin section in Figs. 2 and 3) and offset or extended, as shown at 37, toconform to the projection caused by the several gear-wheels hereinabovereferred to. The gear-case may be made in sections, and the ranged adistance apart equal to the distance 1 sections thereof may be connectedtogether and attached to the machine-frame in any convenient manner. Theupper portion 38 of the housing is also by preference made removable, asindicated in Figs. 2 and 3, so that access can be had to the plunger andits spring for the purpose of cleaning and repair.

The machine hereinabove described is simple and economical inconstruction and reliable in operation and will be found of greatconvenience in stamping mail-matter, in that a very large amount ofmail-matter may be handled as compared with the old hand stampingprocess. The operator has only to revolve the hand-crank and tosuccessively feed the envelops or other articles upon the anvil andbeneath the plunger. The feeding of the stamps and the descent of theplunger at the proper time are attended to automatically by the machine.

It will be understood that the invention is susceptible of variouschanges in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction,which may accordingly be resorted to without departing from theprinciple or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having thus described the invention, What is claimed, and desired to besecured by Letters Patent, is

1. In a stamp-afiixing machine, the combination with an anvil and astamp-supporting table; and a housing secured to the table above theanvil and having upwardly extends ing cheek-plates on the upper portionthereof, of a plunger within the housing operating in connection withthe anvil, a toothed stem connected with the plunger and projectingupwardly between the said cheek-plates, a spring for driving the plungerdownward, a transverse driving-shaft journaled in the said cheek-plates,a mutilated gear on said shaft and meshing with the plunger-stem teeth,a stamp-feeding mechanism, and operative connections between themutilated gear and feeding mechanism whereby the feeding mechanism ischecked simultaneously with the tripping of the plunger.

2. In a stamp-affixing machine, the combination with a stamp-supportingtable having a plunger-housing secured thereon, of a reciprocatoryplunger positioned in said housing, means for operating the saidplunger; of a feeder-shaft geared to the operating mechanism andextending transversely of the table, and a series of toothedfeeder-Wheels mounted on said shaft and spaced apart so that the teethon the wheels will enter the perforations in the sheet of stamps.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN F. AMANN.

Witnesses:

F. S. HASTINGS, B. H. STrrEs.

